Perfect
by mintandchocolatecookie
Summary: "You take care of everyone. Of everything." Jace asked softly, his fingers gently tucking a strand of stray hair behind her ear. The simple action made Clary shiver, the warmth of his skin burning a pattern on hers. "But who takes care of you?" - It was very simple, only that they were too blind to see it. She was his, and he was hers.
1. Chapter 1

"Oh my gosh, Clary." Isabelle suddenly jumped from where she was leaning against her locker, her perfectly permed hair bouncing slightly in the air. "Don't look, but that hot guy from your History class? He's totally checking you out." Her eyes narrowed as she evaluated him further, her hands resting on her hips. "I'd say he's a solid eight point five, though –" Her eyes widened dramatically. "Oh Sweet Jesus. A nine, only because of that ass." She turned to her friend, her tone turning accusing. "Don't tell me that you're not dazzled by his inhuman looks. Don't you dare."

Clary finally looked up from her locker, her green eyes bright with suppressed amusement. "I'm not sure if you know this Isabelle, but you're a pervert." She said, her tone bright. "And no. I wouldn't give a damn even if his ass was as perfect as Pierce Brosnan, and you know that as well as I do." Shutting her locker with one swipe of her hand and carefully balancing a stack of books on the other, Clary almost tripped over her own feet as her companion wailed loudly.

" _Holy mother of God_ , what am I to do with you?" Isabelle almost wept, and had Clary not known her friend's obsession with theatrics, she would've actually turned to look at her. "Pierce Brosnan? Seriously? Newsflash, love. This is not 1982. It's 2017, for God's sakes." Isabelle sulked as they walked towards their classes. "I get you all the good stuff, but you don't even look at them." Her tone suddenly turned chirpy. "Besides, you're already in all the credit classes this year. What harm will it do if you actually do date some –" She was interrupted by Clary, who had stopped in her tracks. "We've been over this, haven't we? I don't date. That's it." Her tone left no room for argument, and Isabelle sighed. "Okay, okay." She threw her arms up in surrender. Just when she was about to say something, there was a sudden rush of activity at the end of the hall, followed by loud hoots and cheers.

"Jace Wayland, Ladies and Gentlemen." Clary recognized the voice to be Alec Lightwood's, the quarterback of their football team. "The champion is finally home!" He boomed, and loud claps followed as the football team ran into the corridor, holding their captain up. All the students immediately parted to make way for the boys, laughing and shouting. All the eyes were on the fixed on the man held up in the air, and Clary couldn't blame them.

Isabelle let out a dreamy sigh. "Man, you think God ever actually intend for humans to be so – perfect?" She groaned, and Clary raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?" She asked, even though she knew the answer perfectly well. Isabelle stared at her. "Him." She pointed, and then clutched at her heart. "Hot."

Clary laughed, but her eyes were on him.

Jace.  
Even though they had been neighbors since the past year when she was moved into town, she didn't actually know him. She'd meet him occasionally in parties and tea parties, and their conversation would remain limited to polite hellos and goodbyes. He was nice enough to her, so it had come to her as a shock when she was told of his very … man whorish ways by Isabelle. But she couldn't really blame the girls for losing their hearts and more to this man. He was, as she had said, perfect.

As the procession reached them, Jace's eyes dropped and met hers. They were a strange dark shade of gold, like the colour of the sky at sunrise. His hair matched his irises and were always falling in front of his eyes, but thankfully he hadn't gotten them cut. Not that she'd care, of course, but she admittedly feasted herself on the eye candy next door through the window of her bedroom every once in a while. She could plainly look into his room if he'd leave the blinds up, as she had realized in the first week of moving to her new house when Kaelie, one of her schoolmates and him had engaged in – loud midnight activities. She watched him sometimes, when he was studying. He would tuck his pencil behind his ear and curl his tongue outward, which she frankly found adorable. Again, not that it mattered. It was just reflex.

Jace nodded at her, and she returned the gesture with a small smile before sorting through her pile of books. It took her a minute to notice that Isabelle was staring at her, her mouth hanging open. "THAT? That was it?" She screeched, and Clary had to stop herself from wincing. "What do you mean, Izzy?" She sighed, already wary of what her friend had to say.

"He nodded at you, and you just – smiled and went back to your stupid, dumb books? You didn't even blush, for Christ's sake!" Isabelle clearly had no intention of decreasing her volume, and Clary was grateful that the cheers drowned them out. This would've been really awkward if people had heard them. "How do you do it? He's your neighbor! Don't you – are you even human?" Isabelle ranted. "Gods, Clary. I would jump his bones in his sleep if I lived as close to his house as you did. But you don't even make use of the opportunity." She shook her head. "What a waste."

Clary chuckled. "You're dirty, woman. I'll give you that." Isabelle tossed her head haughtily, her hands sliding down her side as she cocked her hip. "Well, duh. What else do you expect when I'm a package like this?" Clary had to admit she was right: From her sleek waist to her perfect hourglass figure, Isabelle was a bomb. Add in her lovely elfish features, and she was irresistible. "That, indeed is true." Clary said as they both burst out laughing.

"I'll see you after class?" Isabelle waved as she ran to her classroom, and Clary smiled at her before turning to her own. She looked down at the schedule in her hand, and smiled when she saw her class. _Credit Maths._ Pulling her bag further up her shoulders, she entered the empty classroom. It was her very old habit, to always reach her destination earlier than necessary. It was so much better than being late.  
Clary glanced around the room only for a second before she made way towards the third seat in the last row, her customary seat. In every class since grade four, she had been always sitting on the third seat of the last row. By now, it was a practice, a necessity.

Sliding the bag down her chair, she turned to pull out her books. A loud gasp escaped her lips as she saw the cigarette on her table, and she shrank back so quickly that the chair next to her toppled and fell over. But Clary couldn't hear it. The old scars on her ribcage seemed to burn through her clothes as blood roared in her ears.

Cigarettes.  
Every time she blinked, she could see it. The glowing end of the tiny roll that was capable of causing so much pain. She could see him, holding it and laughing, the hollow sound echoing off the walls. She screwed her eyes shut. This was not good. Taking a deep breath, she tried to think of calm, peaceful things. Stars. Flowing water. Trees. Fire. Burning ends of cigarettes. She took a ragged breath, the air leaving her lungs in slow pants.

Just when her knees buckled and she fell to the floor, a sharp voice broke through her consuming thoughts. "Clary?" It was low, husky. She had heard it many times, from the house in front of hers. Jace. "Crap, are you okay?" Strong arms reached for her as she felt herself being pulled up in a chair. "Clary?" He asked again as she felt warm fingers softly cover her cheek, his voice strained with worry. She blinked, but there was complete darkness all around her.

"Jace?" She rasped, and her own voice startled her. It was so hoarse, so broken as if she had run out of air to breathe. She heard him swear as he effortlessly picked her up. "It's me. Just breathe, okay? Everything's fine." He soothed her, and she could feel herself being pressed close to his hard chest. "It's alright." He repeated, and Clary curled into him. He was warm, and smelled of oranges and something like fresh pine and the forest. "Okay." She whispered back, and felt his grip on her tighten. "Just hang on." He breathed as she heard the squeaking of a door opening. The noises slowly faded away and Clary embraced the cold touch of darkness.


	2. Chapter 2

**Warning: Minor Swearing.**

Clary blinked as she stared at a blank white wall, suddenly unsure as to where she was. Her head was throbbing and making it hard to think, and a small gasp escaped her lips when she tried to move. Immediately, there was someone by her side. "Here, take this." She recognized the voice of their school nurse, Mrs. Fray. "It'll make the pain go away in an instant." She patted her on the head as Clary quickly gulped the painkillers down her throat. Closing her eyes, she rested her head on her palms, waiting for the pain to recede.

"Hey."

She looked up, startled as she met a pair of golden eyes. "Jace? Oh, hi." She rubbed her temples as he pulled a chair to sit by her bed. "How are you feeling?" He asked, and Clary managed a smile. "Oh, I'm great." She waved her hand in the air, wincing as a fresh wave of pain hit her. Jace's brow furrowed as he leaned closer, helping her adjust on a pair of cushions. "You're not supposed to move much, you know." He reminded her. "Your mom said that after an attack, it'll take you some time to get rid of the headache." Clary sank on the soft pillows, sighing comfortably. She closed her eyes as the sharp throbs turned into dull pangs, and Jace just stayed there by her side.

"Thank you so much." She said after some time. "I – I don't know what would've happened had you not been there." She confessed, sitting up as the pain started fading away. He pulled at his chair to get closer to her, his fingers resting on the side of her bed. "I was honestly very scared when I saw you like that." He replied quietly. "I mean, you're always so – efficient. In control of everything." He raised his head, his eyes meeting hers. "It must be something very large to shake you up like that."

Clary dropped her eyes to her hands, looking everywhere but at him. "Why do you have panic attacks, Clary?" He asked, a strange gentleness in his voice she wouldn't have guessed he possessed. There was something about him, something about the way he inquired about the dark shadow that haunted her life day and night that made Clary want to tell him the truth. Not that she had any option anyway, he had seen everything.

"I have PTSD." She said, her voice only slightly louder than a whisper. "It's uh – umm, a mental condition." She twisted her fingers together, not meeting his eyes. "Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Some things that – that I'm afraid of, they can trigger panic attacks. Like today." She slowly explained as Jace looked at her intently. "It's nothing I usually can't handle, but sometimes they – they get out of my control." Finally gathering the courage to look at him, she raised her head.

His eyes were darker than she had ever seen them, and his mouth was set in a firm line. "Something happened, something that causes this, didn't it?" He quietly asked. "Someone did something to you. Something that broke you." His tone was cold, devoid of any emotion but Clary could see the anger flashing in his eyes. To say she was surprised was an understatement: Till this morning, she had never even spoken to him properly. Why did he care so much about a girl he didn't know when he could have practically anyone on the planet?

But that wasn't the only thing that bothered her. It was the fact that someone, more specifically Jace who was unhappy because of her. She didn't like it, burdening people with her grief. "It doesn't suit you. Not being happy." She impulsively blurted out and Jace looked at her, surprised. "What?" He asked, bewildered and Clary felt colour rise to her cheeks. _What the heck, you started it_. She told herself, _so end it now._ "You're a happy guy." She shrugged. "The kind who doesn't have any worries, any regrets." _Any pain_. "You should always keep smiling, it – it fits you." She finished with a sigh, hoping he'd not think of her as some retard.

Jace froze in his chair, shock written across his features. It melted away into a smile that almost took her breath away. "You're something else, aren't you?" He chuckled softly, and shook his head. Looking at his watch, he smiled at her apologetically. "I have a football practice now. I had thought I'd drop by and check up on you on the way." He got up. "And oh, I completely forgot." He said, as if remembering something. "Dad wanted me to invite you and Mrs. Morgenstern for dinner at our place tomorrow night. He'll call your mom, of course, but I was supposed to tell you beforehand. Almost everyone from the neighborhood will be there." Clary flashed a smile at him. "We'll be there."

Just when he was at the door, Jace turned. "Take care of yourself, Clary."

 **XXX**

"I still don't get it. _How_ did you bang your head against the table, again?" Isabelle asked, frowning as they carried their trays to their table in the school cafeteria. Clary sighed. "I slipped, Isabelle. That was it. Jace was there, so he took me to the clinic." She sat down and plucked a fry from her plate. "Could've happened to anyone." She added.

"But it happened to you, woman!" Isabelle shrieked, and Clary exhaled slowly. "I don't get it. I just don't. How can you not swoon over him? That man carried you, he carried you in his arms. You touched that heavenly body of his. Did you feel any –" Isabelle was interrupted by Clary's disgusted but amused voice. "Goodness, Isabelle. Shut up, please. I don't want to hear anything more about this, okay?" She wagged her finger at her friend. "He simply performed his neighbor duties. That's it." Isabelle mumbled something, but gave up on the topic. "You two would look great together, just for the record." She defiantly said before turning to her food.

Clary's thoughts wandered back to the conversation she'd had with Jace in the morning. She hadn't gotten any time to think about it because as soon as he had left, the nurse had handed her the phone to talk to her very panicked and anxious mother. It had taken a lot of calming and soothing her mom to make sure she didn't jump in the car and come to the school straight away. After that, she had persuaded her maths teacher to teach her the basics of the class she had missed. Finally, she had to face a very excited and worried Isabelle.

It had been a busy day.

So now, she finally let the question she had been avoiding occupy her thinking space: Why did Jace care what happened to her? It wasn't like they were friends. Perhaps they were, but not close at all. Just acquaintances. What was worse was the fact that his interest in her didn't make Clary afraid, like it should have. She hadn't even told Isabelle about her disorder, and telling Jace about it had felt completely normal. Natural.

Her train of thoughts broke midway as a tall shadow fell on their table. "Hey, baby doll." A heavily built guy smirked, leaning forwards towards Isabelle who had stiffened in her chair. "Missed me?" Isabelle slowly pushed her chair back, standing up to meet his gaze. "You fucking wish." She spat, her normally laughing eyes cold as stone. "Now do us a favour and get lost."

Clary felt her blood boil as Jordan only smiled wider. He was Isabelle's ex, and they hadn't exactly split on the best of terms. She had found him sleeping with one of the cheerleaders, and had cried for a week after the blowup. "Now, don't be a spoilsport." He tsked, stepping closer to her. "I have a few ideas as to what we could be doing instead of fighting." He leered at her, shamelessly checking her out. Isabelle fumed visibly, her hands shaking by her sides. "Clary, let's go." She barked, picking up her bag. She turned, but was surprised when her friend didn't follow her.

"Don't you dare talk to her like that." The whole cafeteria was watching them by now. Not many people had ever seen Clary angry, and it wasn't a pretty sight. Her eyes bore into his, her face immobile with anger. "And come near her again, I swear to God it won't be good." She vowed, and Isabelle shivered. Angry Clary was never a good proposition.

Jordan froze for a second before laughing. "Yeah? And what will you do, tickle me?" When Clary didn't budge, he peered down at her. "Listen, kid. I will do whatever I want with Isabelle, because she's my girl. And I don't give a fuck about the rest. I can talk to her whenever I want, I can fight with her whenever I want, I can touch –" He never completed the sentence as Clary's hand swung hard, slapping him across his face. There were a few gasps, but other than that no one dared to breathe. Isabelle tried to pull her friend away. "Don't waste your time on him, Clary. Let's go."

Shaking her hand free from Isabelle's, Clary stepped up to the man who was shaking with anger. "Now you listen to me." She breathed into his face, meeting his flaring eyes with equal ferocity. "Assholes like you don't deserve a woman, much less own her. You might have rippling muscles, but you're nothing but a coward. A bloody, fucked up coward." His eyes glinted dangerously. "Shut the fuck up, bitch." He shouted, but Clary paid no attention to him.

"Or what?" She taunted him. "What will you do, hunh?" Gone was the girl who everyone knew. This was a Clary who was fierce and deadly as a lioness. This was a Clary who wasn't afraid. "Like I said, you're a pathetic excuse for a man." She laughed suddenly, the noise echoing off the walls. "Bloody idiot, thinks sleeping with women makes him a stud. Here's the deal, Jordan Kyle." She poked him in the chest. "You're a sad, lonely man who tries to believe that ..."

"I SAID SHUT UP!" He roared, his hand flying out and hitting Clary in her face. The impact made her crash to the ground, and a few guys rose from their table in anger. Isabelle flew at Jordan, but Clary was up in a flash and stood between them. Shaking her head at the boys who were striding towards them, she chuckled as she pressed her thumb to her split lip. "There. You just proved it." She laughed again. "Feel sorry for yourself, Kyle. This is all you're capable of, hitting women because you can't face the truth about yourself."

Isabelle pushed Clary aside as she faced Jordan, her body shaking with suppressed fury. "You are going to pay for this." She swore, and a guy from the table next to theirs roughly caught Jordan by his collar. Clary recognized him to be the 'hot' guy from her History class. Some more boys she knew by sight surrounded them. "Let's go the Principal, buddy." The hot guy said, disgust clear in his voice. "You two need to talk."


	3. Chapter 3

"Ouch." Clary muttered half heartedly as Isabelle roughly rubbed an antiseptic cotton on her bruised lip. "It might help matters if you tell me why you're mad." She asked as Isabelle threw the used swab in a bin with more force than necessary. "Izzy?" No reply. "Isabelle?" Still nothing. Clary shrugged. "I'm going to keep doing this till you tell me –"

"I'll tell you something." Isabelle interrupted, her voice tight with anger. "You, Clary, are the most stubborn ass I've ever met." Clary looked at her, her eyebrows raised. "What, now?" she asked politely.

Isabelle exhaled loudly as she sat down on a chair in front of her friend. "Why did you have to get into a fight with him, tell me?" She fumed. "We could've just walked away. It wasn't that big a deal anyway! He didn't even touch me …" She broke off when Clary's head shot up, her eyes suddenly cold. "Yeah? So you want to me wait till he rapes you?" She said, her voice hard. " _You_ could've walked away, Isabelle. But I'm not going to stand and watch as he harasses you like that. He has no right, no right at all to even look at you." She hissed. "And I simply made sure that he won't dare to do something like that ever again."

Isabelle visibly deflated. "By getting hit like that?" She groaned. "Gosh, Clary. Can you, for once, think about yourself first?" Getting up from her chair, she wrapped her arms around her slender friend. "Damn it. Promise me you won't do something like this ever again." Clary chuckled as she tightened her arms around her. "I can try, but no promises."

As Isabelle pulled apart, the nurse came in. She smiled at Clary. "You're quite a troublemaker, aren't you?" She checked Clary's lip and then the purple bruise that had blossomed on her pale skin. "It'll take a few days for the marks to disappear, but it'll stop hurting after a couple of days." Frowning, she looked at the two of them. "You got that boy reported, didn't you?" Isabelle vigorously nodded in reply. "He's going to be suspended for two weeks, and has got a month's detention." She said triumphantly. The nurse nodded. "Serves him right. Raising his hand on a lovely girl like you." She handed her the medical slip. "Here you go. Take care of yourself, honey."

As Isabelle and Clary left the hospital wing, a lean guy with dark hair and glasses got up from where he was sitting. "Clary?" His voice was musically attractive. Isabelle's eyes visibly widened and she looked like she was about to burst. "Hey. I'm not sure if you know me, but I'm Simon. I'm in your history class." He ran a hand through his hair and Clary smiled at him. "Hi. Thanks for taking Jordan to the headmistress." He shook his head, his tone turning slightly hard as he saw the injuries on her face. "You should've let us take care of him. The idiot would've gotten what he deserved."

"That would've just gotten you into trouble. I wanted him to hit me, you see. Two guys fighting wouldn't get the same punishment a guy hitting a girl would." She shrugged and Simon stared at her, shocked. "You – you did that on purpose?" Isabelle shook her head at that. "You wouldn't understand, buddy. I've known her for three years and I still don't." Simon grinned at that, his eyes lighting up when Clary smiled back. "I'll see you around, then?" Clary said. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but shut it again. "Of course. Bye."

The two walked to the lockers as the bell rang. Isabelle turned to her, still worried. "Are you sure you don't want to go home?" Clary laughed. "It was just a slap, Isabelle. Nothing I can't handle." Unconsciously, she laughed at the irony of the statement. She was used to slaps; they were the least painful. Isabelle exhaled, hugging her once again. "I'll see you after class." She promised as she ran to away to her classroom.

Clary realized she had about twenty minutes before her last class for the day began, so she was debating internally whether to go the library or get something to eat when she heard loud footsteps approaching her. She turned, almost gasping out loud as she saw Jace towering over her. He wasn't smiling. His eyes were narrowed, the pupils blown out wide enough to hide the stormy shade of his irises. His hands were clenched by his sides, and Clary stepped back in fear. The movement made her hair move slightly, the copper locks covering part of her face.

"Wha – what happened, Jace?" She asked, her voice shaking. Creepy men, she could handle. Angry men, not so much.

Something in his eyes softened. "Did Kyle raise his hand on you?" His voice was low, hoarse. Automatically, Clary lied. "No." She shook her head slightly, trying to hide behind her hair. "Not true at all." Jace's eyebrows knotted as he exhaled, his eyes piercing hers. "Don't lie to me." He slowly enunciated. "Clary, did Kyle hit you?" He asked again, and Clary suddenly felt scared.

"I – I'm …" Her voice was almost a squeak, and Jace's demeanor changed. His eyes were still flaming with fury, but the anger seemed to drain from him as he reached for her face. "I'm not going to hurt you." He softly explained, his hand warm as he gently removed the hair from her face. Clary closed her eyes as she felt his whole body stiffen in front of hers. "That asshole." His words dripped with uncontrolled rage but when his fingers traced her bruise, they were soft as a feather.

Abruptly turning from her, he started walking away. She glanced at his hands which had curled into fists and alarm bells went off in her head. If he was going to do what she thought he was …

"Jace, stop!" She called out as she ran after him, but was too late. He had already disappeared by the corner.

 ** _HEY! PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT THE PLOT OF THIS STORY. HOW IS CLARY? WHAT DO YOU LIKE ABOUT HER THE MOST? HOW'S JACE? I SWEAR IF YOU GUYS REVIEW, I'LL GET THE UPDATES DONE SOONER._**


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